Chinese Rulers - Who Ruled China in the past?

Fromm 221 BC until AD 1912, China was ruled by a series of
emperors. These men were powerful and were called sons of heaven. During the
time, china was one of the largest, richest and most advance civilizations in
the world. The Chinese people believed their country was the centre of the
world and they thought that any foreigners were barbarians.

Where was the Silk Route?

The Silk Route was a series of tracks that ran westwards
from China, over mountains and deserts, to ports in the Middle East and around
the Mediterranean Sea. Chinese merchants transported silk, porcelain (fine
pottery) and other goods along the Silk Route to sell gold, jade and horses,
back to China.

What did the Chinese invent?

The Chinese were great inventors and made many important
discoveries. They invented canals to transport goods around the country. They
invented gunpowder, flame-throwers and exploding bombs to defend themselves.
The Chinese developed papermaking and bank notes, and made a seismograph to
sense when an earthquake might happen. They also created silk, fireworks and
the game of football!

Did you know?

The Chinese invented pasta, too. Explorer Marco Polo brought
the recipe for noodles back to Europe from China after visiting there in the
1200s.

Why was the Great Wall built?

The Great Wall of China was built to keep out invaders from
the north. It began as a series of separate walls that joined up in around 220
BC. Along the wall, there were many watch towers. If a guard spotted danger, he
would light a fire to signal to the next tower. This tower would light a fire,
too, and so on, until everyone was alerted.